Justice Department to Rescind Another 69 Guidance Documents

​Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker ​recently announced that, pursuant to President Trump’s Executive Order 13777 and the Department of Justice’s November 2017 memorandum ending the practice of regulation by guidance, the Department is rescinding 69 additional guidance documents that are unnecessary, outdated, inconsistent with existing law, or otherwise improper.

In making the announcement, Acting Attorney General Whitaker said:

“Under the Constitution, Congress writes our laws and the Executive Branch carries them out,” Acting Attorney General Whitaker said. “Congress has given us a specific process for implementing regulations, and we have to follow it. Unfortunately, not every previous Administration has done that, and some have overstepped their lawful authority by issuing guidance documents that impose new obligations on parties outside of the Executive Branch and go further than existing law allows. The Trump Administration has already rescinded dozens of guidance documents that were improper, outdated, unnecessary, or inconsistent with current law, and today we are rescinding dozens more. We will continue this effort to restore the rule of law and our constitutional order because this government is accountable to the American people.”

In March 2017, President Donald Trump issued Executive Order 13777, which calls for agencies to establish Regulatory Reform Task Forces, chaired by a Regulatory Reform Officer, to identify existing regulations for potential repeal, replacement, or modification. Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General Jesse Panuccio chairs the Department of Justice Task Force, which is continuing its review of existing guidance documents that should be repealed, replaced, or modified.

The Task Force identified 25 guidance documents for repeal in December 2017, 24 guidance documents for repeal in July 2018, and has identified 69 more documents to announce for repeal this month.

The list of 69 total guidance documents that the Department of Justice is withdrawing is as follows: